Lancashire Police Seize Counterfeit Labubu Dolls in Multi-Agency Shop Raids

Fifty-eight counterfeit Labubu products were seized from a single Morecambe shop on March 13, when Lancashire Police, Lancashire County Council Trading Standards, and the Home Office carried out coordinated test-purchase visits and follow-up searches at premises in Lancaster and Morecambe. The haul from the Morecambe shop comprised 51 Pop Mart Labubu dolls and seven Labubu keyrings, found alongside 209 packets of illicit cigarettes, 33 pouches of hand rolling tobacco, and counterfeit Viagra.

Five people were arrested across three business premises, two men and three women, on suspicion of employing people illegally under immigration legislation.

PC Katie Foster of the Lancaster and Morecambe Neighbourhood Policing Team described it as "a successful multi-agency operation targeting counterfeit and illicit cigarettes, tobacco and vapes, and people working illegally at business premises." Josh Johns, Chief Immigration Officer, was more pointed on what the arrests signalled: "Illegal working undercuts honest businesses, undermines our immigration rules and often leads to the exploitation of vulnerable people."

The March 13 finds are not an isolated county incident. Lancashire County Council's Trading Standards team had already seized more than 250 illegal copies of the Pop Mart Labubu branded dolls from Lancashire retailers since July. A separate Lancashire Police operation in October 2025 had uncovered suspected counterfeit Labubu dolls at Armico News on Scotland Road, Nelson, alongside 400 packets of illicit cigarettes. The combination of fake collectibles and illicit tobacco has now appeared across multiple Lancashire enforcement actions in Lancaster, Morecambe, and Nelson.

Nationally, the scale goes well beyond one county. Since the start of 2025, more than 200,000 counterfeit Labubu dolls were seized before reaching UK consumers, accounting for around 90% of all counterfeit toys seized in the UK, with a collective value of nearly £3.3 million. 75% of counterfeit toys seized failed critical safety tests, with banned chemicals and choking hazards repeatedly identified in tested units.

That failure rate is what makes authentication worth knowing. Genuine Pop Mart Labubu dolls carry a holographic POP MART sticker, a scannable QR code linking to the official Pop Mart website, and on newer editions, a subtle UV stamp on one foot. Counterfeit versions, sometimes called Lafufus by collectors, often have twisted limbs, misshapen heads, or an incorrect number of teeth; real Labubus have nine. Price is the third marker: in one Oldham Trading Standards seizure, the counterfeit dolls were being sold at a fraction of the normal price, with genuine equivalents worth more than three times as much.

Suspicious sellers can be reported to Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133, which routes directly to Trading Standards. Keep photos of the product, any receipts, and the seller's details before making a report.